What is going on with Oakland, CA! (two-part question).?

Question

1. What will it take to curb the violence in Oakland, CA. Why is a town so close to so many well-known towns in such dire circumstances regarding education, crime, vitality. 2. Specifically related to Oakland's economy, why aren't big business moving into Oakland (specifically downtown)? There are no major players. No Chili's, family restuarant chains, Best Buy, Circuit City, etc... things you would expect to see in an urban area of that size. .. Does anyone have any intelectual thoughts on this? Thanks

Answer 1

Oakland needs good leadership. I get the sense that nobody cares about what happens there, and that is sad.

I am glad you're asking these questions, as it shows caring and concern and could spark positive change.

Oakland has a great airport and seaport. That could be a starting point for positive development. I don't think the lack of chain stores and cookie-cutter restaurants in the downtown is all bad; I avoid those places like the plague whenever I visit any town. As a matter of fact, if you go to downtown San Jose you don't see them there either. What is needed are those pretty little one-of-a-kind places like San Jose has, and that's easier for civic authorities to encourage than chain locations, anyway.

Hope this helps.

Answer 2

1. A large number of African-American gangs have taken over the city and good businesses don't want to run the risk of theft, intimidation, loss of revenue, or violence associated with their franchise to open in those areas.
2. The education system is spiraling downward because several schooboard members have embraced ebonics for accepted school language. This began three years ago in Oakland and parts of San Francisco. Once you accept stupidity and laziness in the English language, then ALL other forms of communication begin to suffer.
3. What we are seeing here is the effects of non-mainstream culture taking over a region of the country when the business world operates on mainstream culture. The MAJORITY of Americans hate rap and hip-hop music, clothing, and culture. It is NOT mainstream culture and to convince people it is hurts their chances in the real world.

Sadly, the MTV, Rap-Hip HOp culture has created an image of black males as being prone to violence, drug and money obsessed, aggreessive, and threatening. This image has been created by blacks themselves--not whites. There is no one to blame for this but black music and video producers, black movie screen writers and directors, and black social leaders who have created this image (largely false) of the typical black male in America.
It also doesn't help that those parts of the country with the highest crime rates have a disproportionately number of African-Americans--Washington D.C., Houston, areas of Los Angeles, areas of Philadelphia.

Some who don't read very much will attribute my comments to racism. If it is racism, then please prove me wrong. Show me that areas with a majority of whites have the higest crime rates (Vermont, Wyoming, Maine, Utah...) Racism has nothing to do with my comments, I'me just aware of the real facts and they are not pretty and facts are not color blind either.

Answer 3

It is a sad situation. I really liked visiting Oakland but I no longer feel safe or welcome there. Things will likely never change until those who live there say "enough is enough" and show the lawless that they have no safe haven there. This would take a very large scale community effort and in todays apathetic world I believe that is unlikely. As for question 2, I believe you answered that in question 1.

Answer 4

Until you take out the trash nobody is going to invest in a upscale place in an area where you would just be begging to get robbed.That's why people who want to live in a better and safer place end up moving , and the only people left living in the area are people who don't care about bettering themselves.

Answer 5

because no major company wants to operate in the black community. go to any chocolate city and look around; no supermarkets, no banks no retail stores, just storefront churches and liquor stores.

the urban (and largely minority) lanscape has become a barren wasteland of hopeless poverty and shame.

if you want to work you have to leave your community, turning us into poorly paid commuters who serve our suburban "betters" and then quietly leave town to return to our slums when the workday is done.

Answer 6

hm... good questions. the homicide rate is up to 81 now, right? i love downtown, but you're right. it doesn't seem like it IS going anywhere. as for restaurants, i prefer chinatown, even if i'm not chinese. i know some of the restaurant owners by first name. ^__^

Answer 7

too many crack dealers ! stores over by west Oakland.